The Town of Benevolence
by MarisaKateBella
Summary: Beth was the apple of her family's eye, until she up and moved to New York for college, planning on a music career, never to be heard from...that is until she reappears in small-town Benevolence, Georgia. She plans to keep her head low as she gets back on her feet; that is until she meets Benevolence's most talked about recluse-Daryl Dixon. (Modern!AU)
1. The Man in Black

**Hello everyone! I hope you're ready for a ride because The Town of Benevolence is going to be just that! This is the story of two broken people who find each other and heal together. Featuring some of our favorite characters from canon! Anyway, I hope you enjoy, I have a few chapters of this written. I'm getting the first chapter or two posted so that people who are interested can bookmark it and such. I have a summer job at a camp that doesn't allow electronics so updates will be sparse, if any, until August 9th! But hopefully I'll be able to write enough to keep up a good schedule.**

**I hope you enjoy the story, and sorry for only writing a bit and then making you wait! I just wanted to toss this out and see what the feedback would be.**

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**The Town of Benevolence**

**Chapter One: The Man in Black**

Beth Greene was young and beautiful. The first part she knew, the second part was kind of difficult to wrap her brain around. Especially as she was right now: going on her twentieth hour in the car, stopping only once at a motel last night for sleep and what was supposed to be a shower but she'd opted out of that after the water had run an unpleasant yellow. So here she was, light blonde second-day hair pulled back in a sloppy ponytail as she drove down the highway. The windows of her beat up green Jeep were rolled down all the way, music blasting. Her car was packed high with everything from her past life, four years away from home at college plus the other two she'd spent since then.

Yes, Beth Green was twenty five years old, two years out of college, and moving back home with her dad. It was an incredibly mortifying, spine-shiver inducing thought. She sighed loudly, slouching back in her chair and wiggling around in the seat a bit, her bare legs sticking to the cloth seats as sweat gathered underneath her thighs.

It was August, which meant the weather was nothing short of melting point. Her hair was curled in ways she hadn't seen it do since two and a half years ago, which had been the last time she'd been in Benevolence, Georgia; the small town that she'd grown up in and couldn't wait to leave. She'd made it out for a while, heading up to NYC for school at Gaillard where she'd studied music. Making it out of Benevolence was not something done easily, or lightly, but she'd worked her ass off and was determined never to come back.

Nevertheless, here she was, pulling off highway 75 onto the familiar exit, rolling to a stop at the stop sign as she waited for a large supped-up truck to roar pass by before turning onto the two lane road. She drove the speed limit, which was a measly 40 miles an hour, not nearly enough to get a good breeze going. Her broken AC hadn't caused her any trouble up in New York, so she'd never gotten it fixed, especially because of the five hundred dollars it would've cost her. It wasn't really worth it, not to mention she never would've had that money unless she'd asked which was so below her it wasn't an option. Now, she was kicking herself. She glanced up at the mirror, where the small digital screen at the bottom of her rearview read 108 degrees.

She groaned inwardly, picking up the speed a bit as she drove past the small town, which was more of just a strip of road with miscellaneous shops on either side. There wasn't even a mall. She opened her pack of cigarettes, lighting one before shoving the rest in the glove compartment, knowing hiding them would be a habit she was going to have to get into to save the sermon from her father she would get if he ever found out about the bad habit she'd picked up in college. Once she passed Ms. Jean's Diner, which marked the edge of the town, she laid on the accelerator knowing that the speed on the back roads were mostly unmarked. She zipped around the corners, the curves as known to her as the lines of her palm.

Finally, she slowed when she reached the edge of her family's land, flicking her cigarette out the window just before coming to the property line. The Greene Farm was situated far out in the boondocks. Beth pulled onto the drive, the gravel crunching familiarly under her tires, kicking up dust behind her, which rolled in brown clouds in her rearview. There where brown fences on either side of the driveway, horses of every color grazed in the fields. The sight of them caused Beth's heart to flutter giddily, the only thing besides seeing her family, which really made her happy to be here.

Well, the horses were her family in a sense. The thoroughbreds had been in the Greene clan for generations, ever since her great-great-however-many-great grandparents had come over from Ireland, they were known as some of the best stock in the entire South. Though small, the farm had a name for itself among other successful lines, they'd had a horse of their line race in every Kentucky Derby since the start, or so the story went.

Beth turned around the bend where the pastures gave way to the view of a large lake. She could see Otis, the head handler, and her step-brother Shawn fishing off of the dock. She honked the horn and they waved before beginning to grab their tackle. She drove up a bit more, driving under a lane of oak trees, before coming out the other side where her childhood home stood tall. The large white plantation house, with its wrap around porch, was a welcome sight. On one of the many front swings she could see her step-mother reading a book.

She parked the car next to her father's blue Ford pick up and hopped out, stretching her arms up above her head and cracking her back in release. Annette had put the book down by her side and was waiting on the stairs to greet Beth as she strode up to the front door. She gave her step-mother a sincere hug.

"Hey darlin'!" Annette cooed, stroking Beth's hair before pulling away.

"Annette. Where's Daddy?" Beth asked distractedly.

"Inside, worryin' himself sick as usual."

Beth thanked her before stepping around the aging woman and opening the screen door to the house. A blast of cool air hit her as she entered and she shivered slightly as the air touched her sweat-damp skin.

"Is that my Bethy?" She heard her father's voice coming from the sitting room. She sighed before pushing away from the door and heading into the living room where she saw her father sitting on the couch with the Bible in his hand, closed around his finger where he'd obviously been waiting. She walked up behind him and threw her arms around his neck, kissing the side of his head. His hair had receded more since the last time she'd seen him and she was sure there were a few more liver spots on the balding parts of his head.

"Hi Daddy," she whispered to him as he grabbed one of her arms gently in hello. She squeezed his shoulders again from behind before coming around to sit on the couch next to him, toeing her shoes off so that she could put her back against the arm of the couch and pull her legs up to her chest. Her father smiled his kind, close-mouthed smile at her and rested a huge, warm, calloused hand on her knee. She grinned sweetly at him.

"How was your trip sweetie?"

"Fine. I feel disgusting though. The motel I stayed at was sh—not great." She tripped over her words slightly.

"Well, I'm glad you're here. Annette straightened up your room for you but nothing's much changed since you've been gone. It's just the way you left it. If you want to take a shower, dinner isn't for a little while."

"Thanks, Daddy." Beth said before hopping off the couch, grabbing her shoes and bolting up the stairs. She came to the large oak door and pushed it open gently. It creaked just the way it had when she'd been fifteen and snuck out of the house for the first time. She laughed once to herself at the memory (which had ended in disaster and totally getting busted) before stepping inside. Her room was exactly the way she had left it; her father had not been exaggerating. The walls were papered with a white background and painted indigo flowers wound their ways up the wall as if her room was made from lattices.

There was a large dark wood dresser pressed against the wall to her right, next to the door, which she laid her purse and keys on. There was a big bed with her light blue sheets that she'd picked out her junior year when she had determined that pink was no longer suitable for a seventeen year old to have anywhere near her room. The dark wood of her head board was equally as familiar, as was the painting above it, with the silhouette of two horses looking out onto a sunset, painted in soft pastel watercolors.

A large wardrobe was to her left, leaning against a wall next to a window that looked out onto the pastures. The two other windows on either side of her bed's headboard fell on to the woods beyond the barn, where she had played with her sister and Shawn, until Maggie had one day declared herself to old to do such things and forbade Beth from the woods. It wasn't until later that Beth had figured out exactly why that had been (answer: it was easy to hide boys in the cover of the trees.)

Beth threw the small overnight bag she had grabbed out of the car onto the bed and headed into the bathroom. She found towels under the sink and turned on the water. The shower was nice and refreshing and afterwards she felt about a thousand times better. She applied a bit of cover up to hide the dark circles under her eyes before pulling her hair back into a ponytail, braiding a section and tying it off with a smaller hair tie. The style was something she'd done since she was little, the extra braid didn't do anything functional, but it was sentimental. Her mother had always kept Beth's hair in braids, and although she didn't particularly care for braids anymore she liked to keep at least a piece of that with her.

Her mother had died when she was three, and she could hardly recall her face, but she was beautiful, dark chocolate colored hair that Maggie had inherited from her and laughing green eyes which both of the Greene girls possessed. Beth looked at those eyes now in the mirror, they looked slightly less puffy and agitated as they had on the way down from New York and for that she was thankful. She slipped into a loose yellow tank top and pair of denim shorts before slipping her cowboy boots back on and heading down the stairs.

One thing she had missed from being home: it was social suicide to wear anything close to cowboy boots in the city, something she had sorely missed; the supple leather was familiar on her feet, worn down just to her exact liking, the feel of the leather hugging her calves gently. She descended the stairs slowly, looking up as she heard the front door bang open, Shawn and Otis entering the house. She greeted them and gave them both a fleeting hug.

"Patricia is coming for dinner, she's gonna be glad to see you girl!" Otis informed her.

She smiled but did not reply, attempting to slip out the front door.

"Where you goin'?" Shawn asked and she paused with her hand on the door before turning to narrow her eyes at him. "Goin' to see him?"

She rolled her eyes.

He laughed. "Thought so, he's in the barn. Been wound tight all day, I think he's expecting you."

With that Beth left the farm house, jumping down off the porch stairs and ambling towards the big red barn on the far side of the property. By the time she got there her hair had already started to frizz and she made a note to herself to pick up some smoothing serum at the drug store the next time she popped over to town. She rolled open the barn door; its echoing boom as it came to a rest a familiar sound. The noises of the barn hit her with a wave of nostalgia. Horses munched away at their afternoon feed, the snap of their tails swishing flies away and the occasional snort or whiny made her smile.

She reached the last stall on the left and let herself in. The big chestnut swung his head around at the sound of his door opening. At the sight of the small blonde woman he woofed fondly and spun his large body around to face her. He was a handsome thoroughbred, standing at 17.5 hands, the top of his shoulders coming right about the height of Beth's head. He had caramel colored eyes and a white stripe that ran down his face, ending at his black nose, where his lips were eagerly snuffling sugar cubes off of the blonde's hand. Beth ran her nails along the white hair between his eyes.

"Hey baby, did you miss me?" She crooned to the red horse as he munched happily on his snack. He nosed her chest, looking for more treats. "Sorry, Achilles that's all I got. I'll get some more for you tomorrow. And we can go for a ride, would you like that?"

The gelding gently lipped at her braid, taking a few of the blonde strands from her ponytail with it.

"I'll take that as a yes." She laughed before stepping forward and throwing her arms around Achilles' strong neck. She felt him rest his large cheek against her back. She squeezed him tightly, letting a few tears slip into his dark red mane, knowing that here she would not be judged for crying. She pulled away after a moment, wiping her eyes. "I'll come back tomorrow. I promise." She kissed her horse's cheek and then nose before turning and leaving the stall. She made it all the way back to the house before deciding she needed a drink, and not just some water which she knew was all her father would have in the house.

"Hey Daddy, I'm goin' down to the station for some lemonade, I'll be back in time for dinner!" She called as she climbed the stairs, grabbing for her keys and purse. Once she was out of sight of the farm she rolled down the windows, lighting a cigarette and letting the sensation calm her nerves. She flicked it out of the window before pulling up to the gas station, parking at a pump and popping the gas tank. She pulled two twenties out of her wallet before skipping into the small store.

She browsed the aisles, grabbing a few chocolate bars to hide up in her room for when the craving struck her fancy, knowing to keep a late night snack near her at all times, any previous candy she had in her room had long since spoiled. As she made her way over to the drinks she heard the bell of the door chime and looked up on instinct to see a man walk in. She went back to her focus of deciding between lemonade and pink lemonade when the imposing, rugged man walked in front of her, causing her to take a step backwards.

"Rude," she muttered under her breath.

She saw him flick his eyes over to her as he passed and she bit her lip since she had not intended on him to hear that. She stepped backwards again, bumping into the shelves behind her, afraid for a moment that the stranger was going to stop and confront her. He looked the type: a bit unclean, dirt obvious on his arms, which were exposed from where he'd ripped his sleeves off at the shoulder, his shoulders were corded with toned muscle. He wore a leather vest and a pair of sturdy work boots, covered by worn jeans with a red handkerchief sticking out his back pocket.

Despite her comment he merely scowled at her and continued on his way after pausing for the briefest second. She watched him go as he shook his head before wrenching the door to the alcohol cooler open and disappearing inside. She blinked after him, shaken slightly by the disgruntled air that had seemed to follow him, before snapping out of it and quickly grabbing a bottle of lemonade and heading to the counter. She checked out, telling the cashier to put the rest on pump 3.

Once outside she leaned against the side of her car, waiting for the fuel to fill up, her back to the store and a foot resting on the tire of the Jeep. Out of the blue she heard some one yell: "Git back here!" before a dog came bounding across the parking lot. It was a good sized dog, lean with muscled haunches and fluffy tail. It was mostly black, with a white underbelly, the inside of its legs and top of its toes also white, a white chest and underside of its chin as well as a white stripe up its nose. All of the white was muddled by black spots. It was a mutt through and through and it looked like it was having the time of its life on its escape.

Without thinking Beth went around to the back of her car and knelt down, holding out a hand and whistling to get the dog's attention. It altered its course to come flying up to Beth, she flinched a bit, waiting for impact but the dog's powerful legs stopped it about a foot from her outstretched hand. "C'mere sweetie," she called softly to the dog, clicking her tongue a bit. The dog twitched its nose and hesitatingly stepped closer, bumping her hand with its tongue. "That's a good dog," she cooed to it, reaching her hand up to stroke its silky, black head.

"Gotcha, ya stupid mutt." A voice said triumphantly and with a bit of amused annoyance as a rough hand clasped around the dog's blue collar.

Beth looked up with her dazzling smile only to have it falter as she made eye contact with the man from inside the store. She would have recognized that glare anywhere, except now close up, in the warm glow of the setting sun she could see the stormy blue of his eyes, broken up by pieces of brown hair that fell down in a disheveled mess on his forehead. She looked down again and continued petting the dog, not sure what else to do.

"Thanks," the man grunted.

"Not at all," Beth replied hesitatingly, unsure how to act around this man. He radiated a distinct aura of social ineptness and anger.

"He seems ta' like ya." The stranger commented as Beth got to her feet, brushing her knee off from where she'd been kneeling on the concrete. "Don't normally go runnin' up ta' strangers."

"Well, animals always seem to know who to trust." Beth smiled at him in what she hoped was an open and friendly look.

The stranger blinked at her from his half bent over position where he was holding onto his dog's collar, his squinting eyes flicking over her as if she was hiding something from him. He was distracted by the black and white dog licking his scruffy cheek. He pushed the dog's nose away but with a half-quirked smile, the expression softening the man for just a spilt second.

Beth cocked her head slightly. "What's his name?"

"Wha'?" The man asked distractedly.

"The dog…he does have a name right?" Beth inquired awkwardly.

"'Course he's got a name," the man's voice was gravelly. "Cash."

"Cash?" Beth raised an eyebrow.

"Like…Johnny Cash." The man ducked his head now, his blue eyes hidden from her view. "Ya know, the Man in Black…" His voice was softer now, almost as if he was unsure of himself.

"I know who Johnny Cash is." Beth tilted her head the other way, blatantly observing the man in front of her; he seemed to want nothing to do with any part of their conversation but had yet to move off. "Did you name him that because he looks like he's wearing a tuxedo?"

His head snapped up and his blue eyes crackled with confusion. "How'd ya' figure that out? Ya' some kind of mind reader?"

She laughed and shrugged her shoulders. "Maybe I am." The sound of the gas pump 'thunking' to signal it had finished fueling her tank distracted both of them as they looked towards it. "Well, I got to go…" she trailed off awkwardly.

The man nodded his head.

"It was nice to meet you…?" Her voice trailed off.

"Daryl." He grunted out.

"Daryl." She smiled. "I'm Beth Greene."

"Greene…as in Greene's thoroughbreds?"

Beth nodded slowly.

"You tha' girl from New York ain't cha?" His eyes had gone back to their narrowed, suspicious look.

"Um…yes…how did you…oh right, small town. Everyone knows everyone. I almost forgot what it's like…"

Daryl said nothing, but watched her warily from underneath his untidy mop of brown hair.

"Well…maybe I'll see you around."

Daryl jerked his head once in what she assumed was a nod. She stood for a moment more, thinking he may something else, but instead they stared at each other before she realized he was finished talking and she turned to move back to her car. When she pulled out of the station she saw a beat up blue and silver Ford cross the intersection in front of her, a black and white tuxedo wearing dog perched in the passenger seat.


	2. Help Wanted, Inquired Within

**Hey y'all! I hope you enjoy chapter two, not a lot of Bethyl action, but it'll get there I promise. Got to set some things up before we can get down to the nitty-gritty Bethyl. Let me know what you think!**

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**The Town of Benevolence**

**Chapter Two: Help Wanted, Inquire Within **

Beth woke up the next morning to the covers of her bed being lifted up and the mattress dipping. She cracked an eye open to catch sight of brown hair. She sighed sleepily and threw an arm around the familiar slim waist, smiling into her pillow when she felt a hand cover hers. The two lay like that for a few minutes more until the brilliant yellow rays of the sun could not be ignored anymore. Beth blinked sleepily and stretched as her early-morning bedfellow wiggled next to her, turning around so that identical green eyes met her own.

"Morning Squirt." Maggie's teasing smile was a welcome sight after over a year, though Beth would never admit it.

"Don't call me that." Beth groaned, pushing Maggie's shoulder and rolling over to get out of bed. She padded across the wooden floor which was cool on her feet. She could hear Maggie shuffling around in the blankets as she washed her face and brushed her teeth. Beth moved back into the room, tossing her shirt in a corner before grabbing a different tank top and slipping it on. She shimmied into a pair of jeans before pulling on her boots.

"Going riding?" Maggie asked as she watched her sister get dressed.

Beth caught her eye in the mirror and nodded, grinning slightly to herself at Maggie's cropped hair which was sticking up in several different directions. "Wanna come?" Beth asked timidly. It had been so long since her and her sister had really had any semblance of a relationship, the last remaining strands having been torn apart when Maggie had visited her for last time in New York over a year ago now.

Maggie nodded and slipped out of the bed disappearing down the hallway to her own room. Beth strolled into the kitchen, picking up an apple from the bowl on the table and biting into it, hopping up on the counter to wait for her sister. Hershel walked into the kitchen not long after. "Off the counter." He muttered to his youngest as she rolled her eyes behind his back and jumped down.

"Morning Daddy." She gave him a dimpled grin when he turned towards her.

"Going for a ride?" He asked, his eyes noting the boots and jeans, which otherwise would be suicide to wear in this heat. For early in the morning the humidity of the Georgia air already pressed against the windows, collecting in the condensation on the corner of the glass.

Beth nodded.

"I'm glad. Achilles hasn't been the same since you left." Her father's voice was light, but underneath there was undercurrents of disapproval.

Beth dropped her eyes, taking a bite of her apple to keep from replying. She knew her father had never wanted her to leave, but she had firmly stood by her decision to make her own way ever since she'd left. They all knew the reason she returned, and if she knew her father, it was never to be mentioned in his presence. That was the thing about small Southern towns: if a family wanted a secret kept, it was swept under the rug and never mentioned; otherwise the whole population would know about it before the end of the week. Beth had already prepared herself for the whispers, knowing that she would probably be the hot topic for weeks, if not months to come.

Was it a pregnancy? Was it failure? Following a music career was suicide, no wonder she'd come home. Such a shame she didn't want to take over the family farm. Was Hershel alright? Maybe his health was deteriorating. So sad, good thing she could make it back in time. At least the girl has some loyalty to her family.

She was aware the rumors had already started flying; it had been obvious by the way the cashier at the gas station yesterday had stared. How that stranger, Daryl, had known about her. News flew faster than spit into a can around these parts. Hopefully the worst she would hear would be "You tha' girl from New York ain't ya?"

His voice was still prominent in her head, just like the rest of him. Especially those eyes. She had never seen eyes that blue, as if they'd been enhanced by a Hollywood studio. She thought that only movie stars had eyes like that. And the way they had been so mysteriously unreadable, dark and stormy as if they never had had a moment's peace, never calm in the eye of the storm. She wondered about him, had found herself staying up last night, tossing and turning, trying to get his suspicious gaze out of her head. He'd looked at her like she'd done him some inexcusable wrong. She wondered if she had. This was a small town after all, maybe in high school…but Beth had always tried to be kind to everyone, she was never one to start a fight. Besides, he had sure as hell looked a lot older than her.

Maybe it wasn't even her. Of course it wasn't her. That was just him. He obviously had something under his skin, probably the same as every other man in this town: bitter about the women, bitter about his job, bitter about his home. Yet, something kept nagging at her, telling her that wasn't it, and not to dismiss him so quickly as another sulking Southern man.

She was snapped out of her thoughts at the sound of Maggie's boots on the stairs. The two sisters walked out to the barn where they saddled their horses in silence. Maggie's stallion, Thunder, was smaller than Achilles, a deep chocolate color that complemented her hair. He had no white markings on him except for a large scar across his chest where a cougar had attacked him while Maggie was out alone when she was twenty and he was a young three year old. They'd almost lost him that night and Beth was sure it was the only time she'd seen her tough older sister cry.

Achilles chomped at the bit as Beth mounted, prancing to the side in anticipation. She patted him softly on his muscled chestnut shoulder. His coat sparkled gold in the morning sunlight. She relished in the feeling of his strong body moving underneath her, feeling more at home than she had anywhere in the past four years. The horse had been with her since he was a foal, after she'd nursed him back to health her junior year of high school when he'd almost been put down for being born with a bad leg. He wasn't usable for breeding because of his leg. Since he was the only horse on the farm that was gelded he was also the gentlest. As calm and sweet tempered as his owner.

Thunder tossed his head next to Achilles as they navigated their way onto a trail in the trees. The stallion was high strung, his ears flicking every which way, his muscles coiling and uncoiling in eagerness to get going. Maggie situated herself in front of her younger sister before pressing her heels into Thunder's side and letting him take off. Beth shook her head and followed at a slow lope, Achilles taking his time picking over the debris on the forest floor. They rode in silence for a while before they broke through the trees into a small meadow.

When they reached the clearing Beth saw that Maggie had already dismounted, un-tacking Thunder and letting him graze on the sweet grass. Beth followed her lead and watched Achilles trot off to nibble at the grass with his barn mate. Maggie stretched out in the middle of the meadow, the top of her shirt raising a bit to show strong abdomen muscles. Beth lay on her stomach next to her, picking at weeds and peeling the pieces apart.

"Are we going to talk about it?" Maggie asked quietly, her hands behind her head, eyes closed against the sun which was beating down on the two Greene girls.

Beth stopped her fiddling, feeling her shoulders tense. Maggie picked up on the stiff air, rolling over onto her side and propping her head up on her elbow so that she could look at her sister's profile. Beth was staring down at the ground in front of her, working her jaw back and forth in an attempt to stall the pinpricking sensation behind her eyes she knew would lead to tears.

"Did he hurt you?" Maggie's soft voice was laced with venom, a tone, part protectiveness and part concern, which only an older sibling could master.

Beth let a tear slip out of her eye and fall. It landed on a blade of grass, hanging to the tip like dew.

Maggie flipped over on her back again with a sigh, her hands clenched beside her in fists as she tried to calm the anger bubbling inside her.

"What are people going to say?" Beth's voice was soft and small; as if she was afraid Maggie would strike out at her, or worse: laugh.

Maggie ran her hand through her short hair. "No one's gonna say anything."

"I'm a twenty-five year old divorcee! Of course people are gonna talk!" Beth's voice rose as she sat up, spinning away from her sister and wrapping her arms around her knees. Maggie sat up as well, facing her sister's back, but did not move closer to her. She knew better: Beth Greene was all softness and sunshine, until she wasn't and then she was like an injured animal, ready to strike at anything or anyone.

"People will know...if they don't already." Beth buried her face in her arms, her sobs reaching her older sister's ears. Maggie finally scooted closer, wrapping her arms around Beth from behind and laying her cheek in her sister's hair.

"It's alright, Squirt. Ain't no one gonna talk. And if they do I'll make sure they don't ever talk again."

"I'm so sorry." Beth gasped as she began to come down from her crying, her sister absorbing the shock of her sobs.

"You ain't got nothing to be sorry for. Zach was a right bastard." Maggie growled. "Don't you dare apologize."

Beth turned in her sister's arms so that she could look into her face. "No. I'm sorry for not believing you, last year." Beth's face was red; tear tracks stained her face, running through the dirt that had dusted her cheeks from their ride.

"It's okay." Maggie said, stroking a hand through her sister's hair. The two hugged, staying like that for a few moments, Maggie attempting to give her sister all the strength she could afford to pass on. When they pulled away Maggie pushed the yellow hair back from her sister's face. "Can I ask you something though?"

Beth nodded her wide eyes red-rimmed but no longer as sad, though still haunted. Maggie wondered how long she would have that spooked horse look in her eyes.

"Why'd you leave? What made you finally…realize?"

Beth actually let out a small laugh, though Maggie could tell that her heart was breaking as she remembered. "He told me he never wanted us to have kids."

Maggie raised an eyebrow.

"It's stupid, I know. But you know I've always wanted kids. A little girl maybe, with the fiery Greene temper and Mamma's beautiful hair, all the things I don't have, and maybe Zach's brown eyes…we'd talked about it ever since we had started seeing each other. Names for her too: Julie, or maybe Mary, after his mom. One day, I realize I might be pregnant. I took the test and everything. When only one of those little pink lines showed up I was so…disappointed. I thought he would be too, but he…he started screaming at me. Telling me how—how stupid I had been, how I must have skipped my pills on purpose. It was the last straw. And all I keep hearing was your voice in my head."

Maggie smiled a bit. "It seems you've got that Greene fire in you after all."

Beth returned the smile, though it was half hearted and she didn't meet her sister's eyes. "Do you want to head back?"

Maggie nodded, there was still so much she wanted to know, but she knew it was probably best she may never find out, if the true horrors of what her baby sister had endured came to the light Zacharias Tweed may not live to see the New Year. On the way back to the house the two sisters rode side by side.

"I heard that new bar in town, Cherokee Rose, was looking for someone to spice up their weekend entertainment." Maggie mentioned while they un-tacked their horses.

Beth raised an eyebrow over Achilles' shoulder.

"Not that kind," Maggie rolled her eyes. "Looking for a singer, so the rumor goes. Thought you might wanna check it out. You know Daddy will be getting on you soon to find a job."

Beth sighed as she ran a brush down the length of Achilles' back. A singing bar gig was better than working at the grocery store, but in no way compared to the job at a music studio she'd left back in New York City. Granted she'd pretty much only been a glorified, coffee running, paid intern but it had been a job she'd loved. The two girls walked back into the house where Annette was working in the kitchen, preparing dinner already. The smell of cooking pot roast greeting their noses and they both sniffed appreciatively.

"Oh, good, girls, you're back!" Annette smiled kindly, attempting to wipe her floured hands on her apron as she turned to them. "All the men are out working, I was wondering if you wouldn't mind running in to town, there was a couple things I am missing for dinner tonight. I thought I'd make some cherry pie, I know it's your favorite, Beth."

"I've got to shower," Maggie practically whined, "I feel disgusting."

"I'll do it." Beth chimed in.

Annette reached up to pat her cheek affectionately. "Of course you will, sweetie. Thank you." Annette handed her the list and Beth turned back the way she came and hopped into her Jeep. It was close to three o'clock in the afternoon and the sun was absolutely sweltering. Down the winding back roads, with the windows rolled all the way down, Beth smiled. The freedom that the country allowed was something that she would never truly want to forget. She decided she may as well stop at Cherokee Rose Bar now, knowing that she probably wouldn't be in town again for a while. The sweat was spirited away from her skin in the breeze, but as soon as she pulled into the small parking lot of the bar it began to collect along her hair line again.

She looked in the rearview mirror, realizing for the first time how un-kept she looked. There was dirt smeared all over her forehead, sweat dripping down and catching in her eyebrows. Her hair was a rat's nest from where it had been whipping behind her when she had rode earlier. Her red tank top had brown and green stains down the front from where she'd been laying in the damp grass—her jeans had not fared much better.

Yet, this was Benevolence, Georgia, not New York City. She decided there wasn't really anyone of importance that she had to put on a face for. Besides, at least she wasn't wearing cameo. She took a deep breath, attempted to get the short curled hair around her temples tamed, before exiting the car and walking towards the bar. She wondered if it was open, since it was so early in the afternoon, the neon sign was not on but she did notice the "Help Wanted, Inquire Within" sign on the door. She decided to give it a try anyways.

Pushing the door it swung in with little resistance. The bell jingled, causing a light-skinned black woman, who was behind the bar cleaning with a rag, look up. Beth glanced around to see if there was anyone else in the bar. There were a decent amount of tables scattered around, the chairs flipped up on top of them so that their legs stuck up in the air. The walls were crowded with posters and framed advertisements for alcohol and NASCAR and guns. It wasn't really her scene, but it looked clean and well kept, an expensive looking pool table was tucked off to one corner. Across the way from that was a small stage that looked set up more for karaoke than any sort of real band.

Beth raised her hand in a small wave. "I'm sorry; I didn't know if you were closed…I saw the sign in the window…" She trailed off.

"It's alright, sweetie. Why don't you come on in and take a seat." The woman smiled kindly at her.

Beth sat down on a spinning chair at the bar, twisting back and forth.

"Can I get you anything?"

Beth shook her head, smiling.

"I haven't seen you around here, you from out of town?"

"Just moved back actually." Beth glanced down, fiddling with a cardboard coaster advertising some kind of Budweiser.

"Well, that makes two of us! I'm Sasha Jones." The woman stuck her hand out.

Beth shook it firmly. "Beth Greene."

"Well, Beth, I can't give you a proper interview today, we're opening up soon and it's free wings Wednesday, so we can get pretty busy, but why don't you come back on Monday?"

"Okay, I can do that."

"Alright, two o'clock?"

"Yeah…um, this job is the singing one right?" Beth pulled at a strand of hair in her anxiety.

"Well, it's a singing gig on Fridays and Saturdays, but bartending/waitressing the rest. You okay with that?"

Beth bit her lip. "I don't have any experience…bartending."

"You look like a fast learner," Sasha laughed. "Besides, most everyone around here drinks beer anyways."

Beth felt at ease with the woman, she seemed to have a no bullshit attitude but was also sweet in a matronly way. Beth nodded enthusiastically, hopping off of the bar stool. "Two o'clock, Monday?"

"Two o'clock, Monday." Sasha confirmed.

"It was nice to meet you!"

"You too, sweetie."

Beth was smiling when she pulled into the grocery store parking lot. She was timid about the idea of bartending, she knew next to nothing about mixing drinks but the idea of singing pushed all other worries out of her mind. She grabbed a cart and began to browse down the aisles, the same dopey smile plastered on her face. The produce was enticing and she spent her time picking out a few different fruits. She tied them up in separate plastic bags before grabbing a peach to snack on as she walked. She rested her forearms on the cart, leaning on it as her cowboy boots clicked on the linoleum floor of the grocery store.

The peach was sweet as she had remembered them being, tasting just like her childhood summers, picking peaches straight from the tree at Sweeny's Orchard. She took her time strolling through the aisles. She looked up from tossing a pack of frozen peas into her cart at the sound of a familiar voice at the meat counter ahead.

"Hurry up! Some of us don't got all day!" The gruff voice barked out.

"Daryl!" Beth called out in greeting as she navigated towards the man. His head snapped up and he glanced around, his eyes held a kind of deer-in-the-headlights look as if he was confused as to whether or not he really heard his name. She waved to get his attention as she finally pulled her cart up next to him.

"What're ya' doing here?" He snapped at her eyes hardening quickly from their bewilderment and his mouth thinning into a firm line, causing her smile to falter slightly.

"Shopping…" she mumbled, backpedaling quickly, unsure now why she had made herself known to this stranger.

"Well, git on with it." He gave her a hard glare, much like the one he had the first time she'd seen him in the drink aisle at the gas station, his blue eyes assessing and almost as quickly dismissing her, turning around to shout at the hassled looking young man with a pimply face behind the meat counter.

"Well…it was nice to see you, Daryl." She attempted to rouse some energy back into her voice, having little success.

"Whatever." He harrumphed.

She hesitated at her spot next to him, chewing over whether or not she had something else to say. Before she could decide, he glanced at her again, his eyes a bit less guarded, more curious than anything else. She quirked her lips at him, the dimpled smile shy as she looked at him from underneath her long eyelashes for the briefest moment, before wheeling her cart around and heading to the check out. She could feel his eyes on her, burning into her back before she turned the corner and disappeared from his sight.


End file.
